Encouragement

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# Father, my Lord and my God, I desperately want to open the gift you are offering. My heart is afraid but not my head. I know your promises. Help me to receive them.

Lord, as I pray, show me in my spirit what is inside the box. I’m untying the red ribbon very slowly. I’m unwrapping the gift, carefully lifting each piece of tape so I don’t tear the red paper, folding the paper ever so neatly before I lift the lid. My fingers are expectantly lifting one side of the lid. The lid is off.

The gift inside is wrapped in protective tissue paper. It’s soft and crinkly and white. I lift the edges to peek inside. There is a smaller box inside. It’s a lighter shade of red. When I lift the lid, there is more white tissue paper. Inside is a smaller dark pink box. There is also white tissue paper inside protecting a pale pink box. When I look inside this box, there’s more tissue paper. The next box is very small and coloured palest pink. Inside the next lot of tissue is a tiny box surrounded by clouds of snow white tissue. This box is also snow white. It is so white that it shimmers and shines and emits light from its surface.

I have to wait a while before I open it because I know this is the last box. My hands are shaking. I’m praying for a miracle, Lord! Rays of light strobe out as the box opens by itself. Inside, nestling on a bed of white velvet is a gold ring. The ring is broad and plain except for 2 rows of three brilliant white diamonds each, on either side of a deep red ruby. Each diamond has a word written under it, in this order – purity, joy, love – eternity, peace, life. The ruby seems flawed until I look closer. There is a drop of blood in the center! When I turn it over, there is an inscription burned into the precious metal. It says “I love you, Cherry”. Jesus’ strong, gentle hand appears on my left. He takes the ring from me. He lifts my left hand and places it on my ring finger. Suddenly I can hear the most beautiful music - like thousands of angels singing in harmony with unknown musical instruments playing.

A deep, powerful voice from above us proclaims that we are now one. Jesus wipes the tears from my eyes with his fingers and puts then into the tiny white box. He takes my hand and then buries the box. When I look down, I’m wearing a flowing white dress covered in small silver stars that dance and whirl and move as if they are alive. My feet aren’t touching the ground because Jesus is supporting me. I can feel myself getting lighter and lighter and becoming stronger and stronger all at the same time. Hand-in-hand, we’re rising off the ground and when I look down, the world is getting smaller and looks insignificant and harmless. He takes me up and up until the world is the size of a beach ball. I can see tiny people scurrying around busy with this and that. I sense His power and perfect control over this tiny globe.

Jesus and I float back down and the world gets bigger again. Suddenly I’m back in my cottage wearing my own clothes. There is great sadness until I realize that His ring is still on my finger! All I have to do is read the words written beneath the diamonds and the inscription inside. I hear Him whispering, “These are my promises to keep you, until we meet in heaven”.

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